The Princess And The Prince

When I found out I was pregnant this time, one of the first things I did was calculate my due date. Then I counted backwards to see when we’d find out the sex of the baby. I figured the anatomy scan would be around the same point I had Annabel’s, which meant we wouldn’t find out the sex until January. I was a little bummed that we wouldn’t know before Christmas…and then I vaguely remembered that the place we’d gone to for our extra ultrasound with Annabel said they could determine the baby’s sex as early as 14 weeks…and my wheels started turning. I would definitely be far enough along to have an elective ultrasound before Christmas. I made an appointment for Dec. 23rd and made a plan to surprise everyone with the baby’s sex as a Christmas present.

At first I considered going alone and surprising Mike, too, but I quickly scratched that idea. I wanted him to be there with me, and I also wanted Annie to come. She’s not allowed in Dr. Risky’s office and she’s been so desperate to see the baby, and I knew Mike would want to be there for that, too. So a few days before the scheduled ultrasound, I told him my plan and he was all in. We waited to tell Annie until that morning. She was BEYOND excited. She picked out her clothes herself:

She wasn’t thrilled that I made her wear pants.

When we got to the ultrasound place, Annie was jumping up and down with excitement. Even though she’d seen plenty of still ultrasound photos of The Acrobat by that point, I was a little worried that to her, “seeing the baby” meant seeing an actual baby. So I explained that the baby would look a lot like what she’d seen, except the baby would be bigger and moving. “It’s not going to look like a grown baby like your friends’ babies – not yet.” She looked at me, “I know, Mama.” Like duh.

I hopped up on the table and the tech squirted the gel on my belly and got to work. Annie was fascinated. She looked completely serious and kept switching her gaze from me to the screen. “What’s she doin’ Mama?” The tech was really sweet and started explaining everything so Annie would understand it, which we really appreciated. I thought Annie would get antsy, but she was completely mesmerized the entire time.

After a few minutes of moving the wand around, the tech asked us if we wanted her guess, or if we wanted to wait until she was certain. I’d seen enough by then to know, so I told the tech to go ahead. I looked over at Annie, and she was bracing herself:

“I think it’s a boy….wait, yes, it’s definitely a boy. I’m certain.”

I kept staring at Annie. “Annabel! It’s a boy! You’re going to have a baby brother!”

Her mouth dropped open as if she was stunned. She was quiet for a moment, processing the information, and then she said, “I will be the princess, and he will be the prince!”

That night, when I sat down to read Annabel a bedtime story, I felt her prince kick for the first time.

112 Comments

Becca Masters says:

Yay!!
You know, no matter how many ultrasounds I see, I still can’t tell if its a boy or girl (even the obvious ones!)
I’m like Rachel in Friends when she’s looking at her ultrasound!
I’d make an awful ultrasound person and no doubt get it wrong all of the time, even with learning! Ha ha!

Colleen says:

CarrieB says:

That’s such fantastic news, Heather. I was a little taken aback to learn at 20 weeks that my second child would be a boy (assumed another girl would be easier,) but everything about having a son has been amazing. From Day One.

Jenn says:

As you know Heather, I am lucky enough to have 2 sons….My oldest child and my youngest child with their sister in the middle. I love boys…they can be so rough and tumble but at the same time, they hold their love for me like a precious gem. My daughter and youngest son who are 3 yrs 10 months apart could NOT be closer. It amazes us to watch. I’m so excited for you guys!!! Like me you get to experince both genders….What could be better!?!?!

Kayla says:

I need to admit…when I first read the (joyous!) news, I was not dissappointed by any means, but I was…a little stunned. I had just envisioned in my head two little girls, sisters, side by side for so long that my mind was a bit flustered at the image being replaced by a boy.

Now though I see just how wrong I was, and how this amazing little boy is so much more perfect than any girl baby could have been. Every Princess needs her Prince! They will be the very best of friends for life, while their amazing big sister looks on with love from above.

Sue says:

Amanda L says:

I love that she wasn’t happy you made her wear pants! My daughters (4 & 3) would be the same way. Good Luck with everything! We’re moving to Northern San Diego county next week from PA, so we’ll be in your neck of the woods and get to experience a warmer winter. I can’t wait!
Enjoy your time with Annie! I love her personality.

Connie says:

This is so awesome. I love Annie’s description too, she is the princess he is the prince. What a magical age she is at. And how cool that same night you felt him kick. He was saying “hey guys, it’s me, the Acrobat Prince”, lol. Happy New year to you all.

Ahhhh! I’m so excited for you guys! Well, I was before, too and would be if you were having another girl, but it’s so cool to KNOW. I have three boys and boys rock. You are going to love having a little prince and it sounds like Annie is, too. I bet he gets dressed in tutus more than once by his big sister.

Evelyn says:

This is the cutest story ever! Annie is going to be such a great bug sister! Quick question, isn’t Annie’s bday in Jan and this baby due in March? Wouldn’t her 20 week u/s have been back in Oct? Congrats again and comment all the baby boy clothes buying!

Mari says:

Kenda says:

Congrats to the Spohr family. Been reading for years but rarely post. Love your family and am so excited for your new little guy coming. Also stoked to read all the boy vs girl posts in the next few years! Heartfelt congratulations coming from Kansas!

Aw, I love this so much! Annie will be the best big sister! The doctor told us at 12 weeks that he was 99% sure that our daughter was a girl and he was right. Amazing! Congratulations on your baby BOY!

And now, I have a question since I’m working on a scientific (hehe) theory that I have going. Did you ask Annie what she thought the baby was before the ultrasound? My theory is that kids that age always know! I recently asked a pregnant friend to ask her 3 year old what the baby was. 3 year old said boy….and it’s a boy! This has happened with several other real life friends of mine, myself (my nephew knew), and my sister, as well as blogs I read. So, I’m dying to know…

And lastly, since I have a daughter named Annabel, I’ve thought a lot about boy (and girl) names that would go well with it. I can’t wait to hear what you guys decide on and I’m happy to share my “list” with you if you’re still looking for ideas:)

Molly says:

Patt says:

What an amazing little person, your Annabel is. I’m so happy for your family. I admit that I was also happy to read I wasn’t the only one who had eyes full of tears after reading this post. Congrats, again. You are going to have so much fun!

Mary says:

Skye says:

Congratulations!! I’m so excited for you, and for Annie to have a baby brother. We have our twin girls now and I’m loving dressing them up all girly, but I also had so much fun when my son was a baby dressing him like a little man. It’s going to be so sweet to see pictures of Princess Annie with her little prince sidekick!! Congrats again, that must have been exciting to share the news with your family at Christmas time.

Rebecca says:

Danielle says:

I love everything about this post. I have found myself sobbing after reading all of your posts recently. Now, I should mention I’m 9 weeks pregnant with twins, so hormones have a lot to do with it. But I am so extremely happy for your family and I am loving seeing you through the process. Annie is going to be such a good big sister. That baby boy will be so loved!!!

Jessica says:

Congratulations! I can’t wait to see what he looks like! Just be warned no one carries as many cute boy clothes as they do cute girl clothes. And all the boys shoes are on the top 2 or 3 shelves at Payless shoe source. Hope you get a few vomit free hours to enjoy the moment!

Oh my gosh, I discovered this last week! I walked through the baby section at Macy’s (just to browse, too superstitious to buy yet) and was soooo disappointed in the boy clothes! They were all so LAME!

Hope says:

I did mention that you might not feel anything until 20 weeks. Sometimes placenta placement and the amount of amnio fluid combine to provide you a fair amount of anterior padding. I didn’t start feeling flutters with the ninja until 21 weeks, and of course I’d compare notes with other moms to be and freak out thinking “It’s been 3-4 weeks, and nothing!”.

Betcha the acrobat kicked because he wanted the story read again. My little ninja would always move around more when I’d listen to music or read out loud in the evenings, and at 2, she loves both very much, and vocally asks for music and/or reading non-stop.

Yep. My kid kept me nervous the whole entire first half of the pregnancy. Part of it was that she moved around so much that half the time they couldn’t find a steady heartbeat.

I had two different OBs during that pregnancy, the first one of which was a 35+ year veteran, who came up with “the ninja” as a nickname after my kid scared the bejesus out of her because she couldn’t “find” her. She was like “that’s never happened to me before”. This was after we failed prenatal screenings, where it took an amnio to make sure the ninja was okay (and of course she kicked up at the needle for the duration of the procedure, just to scare the bejesus out of the tech, while she was at it).

Then the first OB retired, and I ended up with a younger OB who had less experience, so she’d freak out even more about it. I lost count of all the times I got sent down for ultrasounds the first six months because the ninja resisted all attempts at manual detection of a heartbeat (after the six months mark, they were able to get an arterial heart beat easily, so that “hiding” was a lot more difficult).

In hindsight it’s funny, and it totally seems like a harbinger of her personality (she’s super squirmy and stubborn on the best of days), but at the time no one, least of all me, was very pleased with having to jump through so many hoops every visit just to make sure she was doing just fine.

She talks about the baby all the time, and had gone back and forth about if the baby was a boy or a girl whenever it came up, so no one thought she ACTUALLY knew! But we were careful to limit her exposure to all the grandparents – that’s also why we went so close to Christmas!

So sweet, Annie she said. And I am beyond thrilled for you. A BOY! Oh my gosh, how fun!!! Can’t wait to hear what you decide to name him. When can we start making suggestions? Just kidding.

I had the Maternit21 blood test done at 12 weeks, which checks for chromosome abnormalities and can also see if there is a “Y” chromosome present in the baby’s DNA — when the doctor called to tell me our test result, he also told me that the test reveals the baby’s gender…did I want to know? I said NO..not over the phone, I don’t. So I asked him to make a copy of the test results and put it in an envelope for me. I picked up the envelope a few days later. Then on 12/12/12 on the night our family had planned on trimming our Christmas tree, I took the envelope (still sealed – I did not peek!) to a Party Place and told the girl behind the counter to wait until I left the store, to then open the envelope and fill this big box (I had brought a box with me) with the appropriate color balloons depending on if the test said BOY or GIRL, then put the envelope into the box with the balloons, then tape up the box really good and call me on my cell phone when it’s ready. So she did that, and I picked up the box and left the store. Then I wrapped the box in Christmas wrap and put it by the tree. Later that night, we told the kids that there was an early Christmas present to open before we started to decorate the tree. Up until this point they did NOT know I was expecting a baby. I was already 16 weeks along by that time and had managed to hide it from them. (very hard to do!) Anyway, we opened the box … and up floated BLUE balloons!! It took the kids a moment or two to process what that meant, and then everyone got excited. My husband and I had NO idea what we were having, so the BLUE balloons were a surprise for us, too. It was a FUN way to tell everyone Here’s a link to the my blog post with the video that captures the moment:The Big Reveal (scroll way down to the end of the long post for the video)

Ashley says:

I haven’t commented on or read your blog in so long, but I come back around every so often to see how you, Mike, Annie & Maddie are doing. I’m so excited to read that you are expecting again! Congratulations! Also, Annie is so beautiful and SO BIG now!

KaraB says:

Peggy says:

I’m typically just a lurker, but had to comment because Annie’s reaction was so sweet it brought tears to my eyes. I have 3 girls, and my youngest has a buddy who is 6 and has an almost 1 year old brother. They are so cute together and he is *totally* a hit with all the older girls! Annie & the Prince will have a wonderful time together. Congrats!

Marianne says:

Oh, Heather, I love this story! We took my then 2 1/2 year old son with us to the ultrasound place and he FREAKED out. (My two boys are almost exactly 3 years apart — both January babies like Annie!) He kept telling everyone about the “monster baby” in my belly.

Lori says:

I am so FREAKING excited for you, I can hardly stand it. I read your blurb on facebook and squeed and teared up, and then I read this and squeed and teared up, and it’s almost like I know you and I feel like a creepy stalker but GAH. So HAPPY for you. I’m just so happy for you.

Lissa says:

Congrats Heather, Mike, Rigby, Maddie, and Annie! A new baby with a whole new type of excitement now! ALL new clothes to buy – how AWESOME is that??

And I’m sure in the next 5 months you’ll get sick of the name suggestions (and you likely have one picked already anyways)….but I vote for Charming, ha ha. No really, do you watch Once Upon A Time? Prince Charming’s name is James and that’s a lovely classic name.

Lisa says:

I have never commented on your blog before but read often. I love that this baby will be a boy. I have no idea what having a girl is like, but I have two boys. They love their mama’s more than anything!

Leah says:

Yay, pleased as punch for your family, though the sentiment would have been equal otherwise Love her reaction. My daughter was mad when she found out she was having a brother not a sister, she likes him now plenty tho

Jo says:

So incredible!!!! Congrats to all! My daughter is three years older than my son and it is a wonderful age gap and so fun to experience both sexes. Boys are so cuddly and sweet and loooove Mommy, it’s awesome.:-) Love Annie’s reaction and can’t wait to see your little prince.

Auntie_M says:

I tried &I tried to leave a comment when you 1st posted this. Am trying again because I am just so thrilled for you! Even though the title kinda gave away the surprise (or should have!), I found myself breathless with anticipation & tearing up watching Annie watch the process. But when she pronounced that her brother would be the Prince to her Princess, I confess to bawling like a baby. Tears of joy of course!! Congrats once again!
(PS-I was quite certain you were having a boy because of how you are carrying. I love being right!)